What Do We Do With The Circumstances Resulting From Our Sin?

Wouldn't it be great if "forgiven" also meant "forgotten". It does for Jesus but for everyone else it only means forgiven. It is hard for us to forget so there will always be natural fallout for our sins. There are also natural consequences for our sins. You have sex with your girlfriend and she gets pregnant. It is great that you have repented and forgiveness is yours but there is still a baby that needs a father. The Bible is filled with examples of the natural consequences of sin. Abraham is a great example.

Abraham had received a promise of a son who would be the seed of a great nation. However, sometimes Yahweh takes a bit of time to bring things into play. Abraham's wife, Sarah, was getting on in years and really was beyond having a child. She decided to give her servant, Hagar, to her husband so they could have a child through her. That wasn't the deal. It isn't what Yahweh had promised but Abraham was no different than you and me. He got impatient waiting and decided that maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to help Yahweh with the promise.

Sometimes we read these things in the Bible and fail to understand that these were real people, with real emotions. What Sarah thought would be a simple matter turned out to be something that broke her heart. It caused problems in the relationships in the family. Her servant started to think she was better than Sarah. Now Sarah had a rival for her husbands affections. She also didn't think it out very well because she really didn't think she would get pregnant even though Yahweh had promised. When she did, and after her son was born, the real trouble began.

Abraham had cursed his own life with the decision to get Hagar pregnant. Life was not pleasant for him at home:

And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, scoffing. Therefore she said to Abraham, “Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac.” (Genesis 21:9-10)

Sarah was mad. It is never a good thing to try to live with an angry spouse. It is very unpleasant for anyone, but Abraham had no one to blame but himself:

And the matter was very displeasing in Abraham’s sight because of his son. (v. 11)

It was hard for Abraham because he loved Ishmael. Just because it was wrong and it was sin does not mean that emotions are not legitimate. That is what is so hard about sin, it results in very real things that threaten to crush us. Sins of the heart, those involving the entanglement of emotions, are the hardest. Abraham could see no way out of this. So take a real good note of the grace, mercy and compassion of our God:

“Do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for in Isaac your seed shall be called. Yet I will also make a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your seed.” (v. 12-13)

This was not Yahweh's original plan but he loved Abraham and because Ishmael was Abraham's son he was going to look after him and grow him into a nation as well. But the promise was still going to be through  Isaac because he was Sarah's son too, and that was the original promise. Yahweh was bringing relief to Abraham by telling him to focus on Sarah, his wife, and he would care for Ishmael in Abraham's place.

Be encouraged by this. We may mess up and sin, going off the path of Yahweh's will, but he always has a way of bringing it back on track. We may change the circumstances by our sins but Yahweh is greater than all things and nothing frustrates his will. We may have to face uncomfortable situations for a while but we are stilled loved by Yahweh. Just make sure you have truly confessed your sin and repented, seeking a restored and vibrant relationship with Jesus. That's all Yahweh really wants, so that he can work through you.

Whatever the circumstances resulting from your sins, surrender it to Jesus and he will work the Father's will on it, and it will be good. Just look at the fore-parents of Jesus and you will see the circumstances through which Yahweh brought about his will. Don't forget that Yahweh is not a man; we should never place our limitations on him. The best thing you can do is trust Jesus..

A Simple Matter Of Salvation

It really gets on my nerves when people complicate salvation. Becoming a follower of Jesus Christ is simple. You don't have to make promises, or go out and clean yourself up. You don't need to understand perfection or even desire anything but to be close to God. You certainly don't have to be a Bible scholar or even know anything about the Bible. "Just as you are", is how the invitation reads:

"When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ." (Colossians 2:13, NIV84)

I think that "when" is a very important point for us to stress. The "when" represents every moment of every day of our life. That "when" is constantly happening, taking place in the coffee shop, on the bus, in the mall. It is happening all around us which means salvation also belongs in those places. Salvation is not something reserved for our Sunday services but is available at any moment a person turns to Jesus.

We cannot emphasize enough the point that God has taken care of all those sins. Too many people turn to Jesus hoping for a little relief but God gives the full body treatment. There is no need to pick up the guilt of our sins ever again, they are gone. There is no need to relive those days in our thoughts again and again, they are forgotten:

"He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross." (Colossians 2:14, NIV84)

Note: all our sins. Also note how he did it: by cancelling the written code. He hasn't done that for everyone. He has not removed his perfect law so that no one will be condemned. He has done that for those who accept Jesus. It is hard to be accused of something when there is no law. You can't be accused of jay walking if there is no law against jay walking. That is God's grace. That is what he has done for those who choose Jesus. The sin has been removed because the regulation has been removed.

I came across this image the other day as I was reading through the Bible. I have read it hundreds of times but something on that day made it stand out to me:

"Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord , and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. The Lord said to Satan, 'The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord , who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?' Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes as he stood before the angel. The angel said to those who were standing before him, 'Take off his filthy clothes.' Then he said to Joshua, 'See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put rich garments on you.'" (Zechariah 3:1-4 NIV84)

This is what has been done for us through Jesus Christ. Satan can accuse all he wants but those sins have been cancelled, removed, thrown away, forgotten, covered by God's grace in a perfect and complete manner. We are covered by the covenant of Jesus' blood which means the regulations have been cancelled and do not apply to us.

Of course this does not mean we get to do what we want. We could but if we continue in rebellion to God it means we remain as slaves to sin. But our response to Jesus for what he has done is not to continue in rebellion but instead to run to him with arms wide open. We embrace our King and choose to follow him all our days. We gladly obey the one who has paid the price for our peace and for bringing us into the experience of such incredible love.

There is nothing complicated about the love of our Father and there is nothing complicated about the salvation he has arranged for us. Simply turn to Jesus and he will guide you in his love.